Imagine you're reading a graphic novel. That's why it's in present tense. I'm describing the "art". "Small Wonder, Part One" Communications Officer's Log, Stardate (insert date here): As of 0900 hours, the interference Lieutenant Burr noted at 0314 hours is still present on all channels. We have been attempting to determine its origin point with no success thus far. I am hoping that Engineering may be able to clear this up. Scotty stands next to Uhura, who is seated at her station, frowning and sticking her finger in her ear, waggling it to ease her discomfort. "Understand you've had a rather….difficult morning, Lieutenant. What's the matter?" She picks up her earpiece from the desk and hands it to him. "See for yourself, Scotty…..or should I say, 'hear for yourself'." He picks up the earpiece and holds it next to his ear -SCREEEEEEE!- before dropping it with a clink! "You weren't kidding, Lieutenant….that's enough to drive someone stark raving mad! How did Shane stand it for half a shift?" "He didn't; this is my-yawn- 4th cup of coffee. Last I saw him, he was bound for sickbay, holding his head." She takes a sip. Scotty bends over the console, staring at the screen. "Tsk, tsk. Poor lad….. I wonder if there's a commendation for this kind of thing?" Keenser comes to stand beside him. Kirk strides onto the bridge. "If there isn't, there should be. What's the latest?" Uhura stands up. "No progress, Captain. We haven't been able to find its origin or decipher it….right now we're not even sure it's a signal." Kirk sits down in his chair and leans forward. "Mr. Chekov?" Chekov turns to face Kirk. "It's wery veak, sir…..nothing in the immediate area could cause zat kind of interference. No radiation, no other ships…." Kirk looks thoughtful. "That's a lot of unknowns…." Scotty is still looking at the computer screen. "I'll try running some diagnostics, but that'll take – " He sees Keenser listening to Uhura's earpiece. "How can you stand that unholy noise?" "Not noise." "The plasma coils it's not-" "Voice. Very high pitch." Keenser taps the screen a few times, adjusting the settings. He hands the earpiece back to Scotty, who listens for a second. "Well, I'll be…." He passes it back to Uhura, who puts it back on. "He's right, sir…" She turns to face Kirk. "I can definitely hear it now. Somebody keeps repeating the same phrase over and over again…..with urgency." A display screen shows a repeating series of sound waves mapped out on a graph. "A distress call then?" Kirk asks. "Yes, I think so. Probably automated." "Which means we may already be too late." Spock stands next to Kirk, hands behind his back. "Time may or may not be of the essence." "Yeah, well, either way….try to enhance the signal. Let's see if we can pin down a location." Kirk steps down from his chair. "Attempting to do so now…" Chekov taps a computer screen at his station several times. "Mr. Sulu, system's edge." "Aye, aye, sir." The ship warps briefly before stopping. "I think zat did the treek, sir….ze signal ees coming een better now. Ve have a location." A blinking light appears on the grid map he is looking at. "ETA at warp 4 ees…..17 minutes. " "Shall we?" Kirk waves his hand. "Warp 4, Mr. Sulu." "After all this time, you'd think I'd know where everything is." Dr. McCoy is grabbing some small containers off a shelf and adding them to a bag, even as his eyes are looking for something else. "Are you sure we're not just running a fool's errand, Jim? The place could be toast by now." Kirk is standing at the door to the room, leaning against the doorpost. "Long range scans of the planet were inconclusive. So I'd guess no. Hope it's a false alarm." He smiles. "Don't forget your dancing shoes." "Hmm…you think I'll have time for- Jim!" McCoy goes from thoughtful to annoyed, his head turning to face Kirk. Kirk shrugs. "What? Ensign Bruckner's coming along, and I've seen the way you looked at her yesterday." Silly grin. "Just so it's not a total loss if nothing happens..." "If nothing happens, I will be more than happy to return to the comfort of the ship, thank you very much." McCoy walks towards the door of the storage room, his bag slung over one shoulder. "But I highly doubt it." A security team is standing around in the transporter room dressed in environmental suits. One of the transporter officers looks up. "Where's the rest of the away team?" "Getting ready. We're going down first to clear the area." Zahra adjusts something on her sleeve. She turns to her fellow security members. One is a woman with shoulder length black hair held back by twin blue clips. (Presumeably Bruckner.) "As always, stay alert and be on your guard. We're going down there blind – no intel. Conditions are liveable, but until we know the nature of the crisis…we can't afford to miss a trick." She slips her phaser into its holder as the other security team members step onto the transporter pad. Kirk strides down the hallway, followed by McCoy. He is listening to his communicator. "Sir, the security team landed safely on the planet 3 minutes ago." "Good. Put me through to them, will you, Lieutenant?" Kirk looks at McCoy with a "so far, so good" expression on his face; McCoy's hand is raised in a "wait for it" gesture. "Captain?" "What's the good word, Zahra?" Zahra is standing on top of a rock in a desert-like environment, while behind her the other security team members are scanning or sweeping their immediate area. "All clear, sir. If there's any peril to be had on this planet, it isn't here. Signal's coming in stronger but we can't tell from what. Transport at will." "What's the matter? Getting lonesome?" Kirk asks. "All four of us? Not likely, Captain." She smiles, arms crossed. "See you in a flash. Zahra out." Kirk stops with his back to the transporter room door. "That's odd. Better reception but no danger in sight?" He turns around and bumps into Scotty, who is geared up. "Ooof!" "Watch out, sir." Scotty dusts imaginary dust off his suit. You can see Spock on the transporter pad already behind them. "Of course he beat us here. Probably ran all the way." McCoy mutters under his breath to no one in particular, a snide look on his face. "On the contrary; it would be most illogical to overexert myself prior to undertaking a mission of unknown risk, length and activity level." Spock faces McCoy as he steps onto the pad. McCoy stands next to Spock, facing Kirk as he and Scotty join them. "I take it back; he wouldn't have to run. You know, some shifts I'd trade half my good looks for a fraction of his endurance." He pinches the air to indicate the fraction. "An exchange which would have a rather unfair result, in your favor." Spock replies. "Did he just-" McCoy looks confused. "I think he did, Doctor." Scotty smiles, and Kirk laughs. Spock is stoic as always. Kirk addresses one of the transporter officers. "Ms. Chavez, four to beam down." "Just a minute, sir. Resetting the calculations." She types on the screen and shares a look with the other officer, who confirms. "Good to go." "Energize." All four are posed on the transporter as light swirls around them. An alert beeps and a light flashes on the other officer's console. "Huh? That shouldn't be so –" he says as the transporter room explodes with a flash of brilliant light and smoke. KA-BLAM!
"Small Wonder, Part Two" Fire suppressant systems come on in the transporter room. Chavez shakes her head, stunned. She stands up and the other officer follows her, coughing and waving smoke out of the way with their arms. They look around the room, but there's no sign of the four senior staff members. Uhura turns in her seat to face Sulu, who is in the captain's chair in Kirk's stead. "Captain, I'm getting multiple reports of an explosion!" "Where?" "Still trying to determine…." Her face falls. She whispers, "The transporter room." Sulu's brow furrows. "Mr. Hunt?" A tall man standing behind a transparent screen nods. "Indications of a massive power outage in the surrounding area….and fire suppression has been activated." Sulu presses a button next to the chair. "Sulu to transporter room….what's going on down there?" "Chavez here, sir. From what we can tell, there was a massive spike in energy just after we initiated beam-out." Her hair, face and uniform are stained with fire retardant and ash. She turns to look at the other officer, who is similarly messy. He is studying a computer screen. "The blast occurred microseconds after they beamed away. There's no indication that they didn't make it planetside." Sulu frowns. "But no indication that they did, either." He shares a worried look with Uhura, Chekov and others on the bridge. "No, sir." "No response on their communicators." Uhura adds. She's biting her lip. "Zahra to the bridge." Uhura straightens up in her chair. "Go ahead." "We've swept the location of the unknown signals and still haven't found any indications of a humanoid civilization, above or below the ground. Signal's stopped coming, too." She is leaning on a large boulder. The rest of the security squad surround her. "Tell the captain he needn't bother coming down here after all….." Falling stars are raining down from the sky. "…unless he wants to see a light show." The bridge is silent. Zahra's voice issues from the comm. "Requesting permission to beam aboard again." Sulu stands up, pacing, his features tight. He swallows. "I'm afraid we're having….issues with the transporters right now. We'll send a shuttle for you. Just sit tight. Sulu out." He switches off the comm. "Issues, sir?" Chekov asks. Uhura is gripping her console tightly. " There'll be plenty of time to explain later. Right now, our focus should be on finding our missing crew members." He strides to the viewscreen, looking out at the planet which is surrounded by fragments of debris in a loose ring formation. One of the pieces is significantly larger than the others. *** "Where are you guys?" Kirk is lying on his left side on the ground. He blinks rapidly. Spock offers him a hand up. "Where are we?" he asks as he takes Spock's outstretched hand, stands and looks around. They are standing in a large dark corridor. "I am not certain, but I believe we are still on the Enterprise." Spock looks down the corridor. "The Enterprise?" Kirk follows his gaze. "What happened to the lights?" "Mr. Scott has gone ahead to investigate the power failure now. As for Doctor McCoy…." Spock lets his words trail off as he waves his hand back down the hall the other way. Only McCoy's head, arms, and shoulders are visible; the rest of him is hidden by shadow. He is covering his eyes with both hands. "Tell me the truth, Jim…..am I or am I not integrated into the wall?!" Kirk smiles. "Relax, Bones, you're fine, I'm fine, everybody's fine…..for some reason the transporter just decided to beam us here." McCoy uncovers one eye, looks down, then uncovers the other one. "Phew!" He wipes his brow. "Where is here? Darned if all these hallways don't look alike…" "Scotty'll know. He's just up ahead. C'mon." Kirk jogs up the hall, the others following. "Hey Scotty, what's with the lights-" They round the corner and find Scotty standing still, staring at a wall, arms hanging down at his sides. "You're not gonnae like this, sir…..not one bit. And I cannae say Dr. McCoy will be tickled, either." He turns to face Kirk, an odd look on his face. "You see that large door?" He points towards the wall. The door is nearly as tall as the ceiling. "That's no door at all, sir…..it's an access hatch." "Say what?!" McCoy's mouth hangs open. Kirk puzzles this over. "So either the ship just got a whole lot bigger…." "….Or we have been reduced to a fraction of our normal size." Spock finishes. "Given that we were being transported prior to this moment, it would seem to be the more likely scenario of the two." McCoy shakes his head and paces back and forth. "I don't believe this. I don't believe this…." "Believe it or not, it is our situation." Spock turns to Scotty. "Have you tried to contact the bridge with our location and status?" "Aye, but my comm's shorted out, an' I expect yours'll be too. Whatever caused this must've fried the circuitry." Scotty holds out the useless device to show Kirk and Spock. "What do you want to do now, sir?" "First things first; let's get the heck out of this dark hole." Kirk presses against the door. "Ugh….I think this'll take all of us." The other three push on the hatch, straining and grunting. Finally the hatch opens, sending all four of them tumbling out in a heap. They sit down on the floor, catching their breath. McCoy looks at the others. "Something tells me that was the easy part." *** Sulu stands in the transporter room, behind the protective screen with Chavez and the other transporter officer. An engineering crew member is kneeling on the floor, removing a panel from the transporter pad and passing it to another. Keenser is overseeing the work. "I've got good news and bad news, sir…." Chavez's mouth is drawn in a firm line but her eyes show a bit of hope. The other officer looks down. "The good news is, we've managed to narrow down their location to somewhere on Deck 9. Best we can do….their patterns bounced around inside the ship. As for the bad news…." She pauses. "We don't know their current status. Since they're not answering their communicators…." "It doesn't look good. Thanks Isabelle, David," Sulu nods and they return the nod. He strides out of the room and flips open his comm. "Security." "Hendorff here. Hey, what's the latest on - " "Listen….I want you to put together a search party and sweep Deck 9." "Can do…" Hendorff is holding his communicator in one hand and beckoning 2 other security officers towards him with the other. "Deck 9?...Sir, shouldn't we be trying to locate the away te-" Recognition dawns. "You're saying they're-" "Exactly." "On our way." *** "Isn't she a grand lady? Mind you, I thought she was something special before….but already I'm seeing her in a whole new light." Scotty is standing in the middle of the massive, empty hallway, arms raised upward, while the others walk next to him. Kirk looks at Scotty. "You can wax poetic about the ship later, Mr. Scott. Priority one; get to the bridge. Somebody's still in trouble out there and we need to find them." "I thought priority one was de-shrinkifying us." McCoy folds his arms across his chest. "We're no good to anybody like this. Imagine trying to operate a computer – it'd be like playing hopscotch!" He places his hands over his stomach. "I knew I shouldn't have had that chili pepper omelette for breakfast. Where's the bathroom?" "The nearest facility is approximately 150 feet from our location. At your present stature, that would be a distance equivalent to 5.7 miles." Spock says, eyes gazing upward while thinking. "Well, that oughta do wonders for my digestion," McCoy says, making a face. A shadow looms over them and they look up. A large man in a red shirt hurries past them, tricorder in hand. He pockets it and flips open his comm. "Section 7 clear. No sign of them." Hendorff's voice comes over the comm. "Section 8, clear." Spock turns to Kirk. "Captain, I think they're looking for us." McCoy runs after the security officer, past a doorway, waving his arms. "Hey! Stop! Down here! Lieuten- oof!" Kirk tackles him to the ground with a thud. Another security officer walks out of the door, stepping where McCoy had been only moments earlier. "Ow….I'm a doctor, not a halfback!" "You were almost a flapjack. Watch where you're going next time, Bones." Kirk gets up and helps McCoy stand. The group watches the security officers turn a corner at the end of the hall. "It's no use. We'll never catch up to them now." Kirk covers his face with his hand. "We can't do a darn thing." "I am confident that the crew can effectively handle our disappearance and the distress call without us." Spock places his hand on Kirk's shoulder. "Aye, they're a good bunch, sir. Could nae wish for better. They'll figure it out….eventually," Scotty affirms. "Yeah, you're right….I just hate feeling so powerless, that's all." "Join the club," McCoy says, brushing his environmental suit off. *** "We couldn't find them anywhere, sir. Looked in every room, scanned every hallway….it's like they vanished into thin air. We're expanding the search to Decks 8 and 10, just to be safe." "Thank you, Mr. Hendorff. Shuttle back yet?" Sulu asks. He's sitting in the observation lounge. "Just got here 2 minutes ago," Zahra replies curtly before Hendorff can speak. "Thanks for keeping us in the loop, by the way." "Didn't want to worry you. My prerogative." He turns off his communicator and walks out, heading into a turbolift. "Bridge." He closes his eyes, then opens them again. "No…scratch that...deck 9." Chekov is watching the viewscreen, a troubled expression on his face. Other bridge crew go about their tasks as usual, but more slowly. He looks down at the computer screen when he hears a soft sniffle. He sees Uhura trying not to cry while monitoring her station. Chekov walks over to her. "Lieutenant?" She looks up at him. "Zhey'll find zem. I know eet." He places a hand on her hand and squeezes it. She wipes away a stray tear. "I- you're right….it's the waiting….and not knowing…when it's someone you love…" She pauses. "I had to tell Carol a-about the s-s-situation. She-she took it w-well. But there's nothing we can do, and we both know it – security's been and gone with nothing to show for it." Chekov thinks briefly. "I zhink if Spock were here, he'd tell you not to worry. To keep doing your job." She considers this whle he continues. "Maybe if we vork together we can find vhere the signal came from." Uhura nods. "Of course he would." He walks back to his seat. "Pavel?...Thank you." "Anytime." Chekov offers a brotherly smile. *** "Ergh! As soon as we get back to normal, I'm – ugh- putting you all on a strict diet!" McCoy strains beneath the weight of the other three. Spock looks down at McCoy from his perch on the doctor's shoulders. "I cannot speak for the captain and Mr. Scott, but I can assure you that my bulk is composed of muscle, not fatty tissue. Perhaps some weight training would be in order, Doctor." Kirk is standing on Spock's shoulders, holding up Scotty. He smiles down at McCoy. "Hear that, Bones? Spock –ugh- just called you a 98 pound weakling. Heh, heh." "Oh, yeah? Well, he called you fat, too." Kirk looks up at Scotty, who is fiddling with some wiring in an open panel. "Ow-quit fidgeting, Scotty! You doing a jig up there?" "I will be if I can get this blasted door open! As I recall, it was your idea to make a human pyramid in the first place. I can only do so much with few tools and tiny hands. " "Hey, if this works, we can – ugh- access the computer and call for help. Keep your shirt on." Sulu exits the turbolift and walks down the hallway. He takes out his tricorder, but then thinks better of it and puts it back. "Gotta think outside the box for this one. Tech couldn't find them….what am I missing?" He looks in all directions before rounding a corner. "Did you hear that?" Kirk turns his head. "Yeah, it's my spine snapping like a wishbone," McCoy grunts. "It sounded like footsteps. Coming this way." Spock looks in the same direction. Sulu appears in the corridor, intently gazing around. "Sulu!" Kirk yells "Over here!" "He will not be able to hear you-" Kirk waves his arms in the air. "Hey! Hey, SULU! Look dow-whoa!" He flaps his arms, trying to regain his balance, but it's no use. He tumbles, knocking Spock and McCoy to the ground beneath him in a pile. "Yipes!" Scotty scrambles in midair for a second before grabbing the wires and holding on for dear life, legs kicking back and forth. "Help!" Kirk stands up slowly and stiffly. "Sulu! Sulu!" Sulu stops, listening. "Captain?...Where are you?" "LOOK….DOWN!" Sulu drops to his hands and knees, a puzzled look on his face. He moves his head close to the ground, staring incredulously at the small Captain Kirk. "Captain? Is that you?" "It is all of us. Present and accounted for." Spock gets up to stand beside Kirk. "Yeah, all in one piece. Relatively speaking." McCoy presses his hands against the small of his back, grimacing. Kirk smirks at Sulu. "Surprised?" Sulu smiles back. "Relieved." "Hey, I hate to interrupt this little family reunion, but will somebody please git me doon?" All eyes shoot upward to a still pathetically dangling Scotty, who's watching them with an expression that's part fear, part annoyance. Sulu tries but fails to stifle an amused look. "Right away, Mr. Scott." He reaches up his flat open hand towards the wiring. Scotty lets go and drops into his hand. He lowers the hand and everyone climbs into it. Sulu takes out his comm. "Sulu to Bridge…..I've found them. Alive." A gasp on the other end. "Are they all right?" He looks down at the four officers in his hand. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you." Yes, this chapter is longer than part one. Part one has less dialogue but more visuals/bigger pictures (in your head, of course.)
"Small Wonder, Part 3" Captain's Personal Log, Stardate (insert date here): Thanks to a transporter malfunction, myself, Dr. McCoy, Spock and Scotty have….a new outlook on life. Man, I used to think space was vast before, but being shrunk has taught me that perspective is everything. And I think I'll need plenty of it in the next few hours…. Keenser puts his face next to a very small Scotty. "Heh heh. Shorty." He pokes him and Scotty flinches. Scotty is standing on the surface of a table in sickbay. He indignantly puts his hands on his hips. "Shorty?! You of all people should know better." Uhura is sitting on a biobed and holding a standing Spock in the palm of her cupped hand. "I still can't believe it. How is this even possible?" Spock replies, "I did not have sufficient time to analyze the details of our highly unique situation. Our foremost goal after the accident was making our condition and whereabouts known." Uhura smiles at him, followed by a look of concern. "I'm just glad you made it back in one piece. When I heard what happened….well, it brought back some of the horror stories they told at the academy about transporters." She shivers. "Never heard anything like this, though." Sulu and Chekov are in the background, having a conversation. Chekov can't keep his eyes off the tiny officers. Carol runs into sickbay and stops by another table, looking down at Kirk. "Jim! I thought you were dead. All of you. Everyone did." She touches his face with her index finger. Kirk flexes his arms, grinning. "Hey, have a little faith in me, will you? I'm indestructible." Carol turns her back on him, arms crossed. "Not funny." Kirk's face falls. "Mmm…you're right. It's not. I'm sorry, Carol." He reaches out and touches her sleeve. She smiles at him. A nurse appears, carrying McCoy on a silver tray. "Thank you, Donna." She sets the tray down and McCoy steps off and onto a table in the center of the room. He claps his hands and everyone looks up. "Okay, listen up, people. Aside from our obvious dilemma, everything checks out. Circulation, respiration, neuro-function….all normal. So technically, we're cleared for duty." Spock raises an eyebrow."'Technically' being the operative word, Doctor." "Pretty hard to command respect when your subordinates can skoosh you if they don't like your orders." Kirk adds. "I'm not saying it won't be a challenge. But it can be done. I still ran the tests on us; Nurse Mallon here was kind enough to press all the buttons for me." McCoy gestures behind him. "No shame in captaining by proxy, Jim." "Hopefully it won't come to that. Mr. Scott, any idea how we can return to full size, and soon? There's still the matter of that distress signal….I don't like loose ends, and the sooner things get back to normal around here…." Kirk's face is shadowed with concern. All the tiny crew members are visible behind him. Scotty and Keenser turn to face the group. "Well, actually, Keenser and I have been talking it over, and it's fairly simple. Once the transporters come online again, it's just a matter of going up and coming back down…with a few adjustments to the settings in between." He taps his forehead. "See? Even if I'm wee, I can still think big." Chekov's face has a look of sudden realization on it. "Theenk beeg. Zat's eet!" He runs out the door. "Of course!" Kirk's brows furrow. "Where's he going in such a hurry?" "Ah, could be any number of things….ye never can tell when Pavel has a brainstorm…" Scotty replies. Carol and Chekov are studying a tablet on the conference table. "Well, this certainly would account for the uniformity of the toquinite deposits…" Chekov nods enthusiastically. "Exactly…and I zhink-" They are interrupted by the entrance of the others. Uhura is carrying the tray this time with the four shrunken officers seated on it. Kirk starts to stand up as she places it on the table. "Mind explaining why you're starting this meeting without us?" Carol and Chekov turn around. "Sorry, Keptin….I vas just running my theory by Dr. Marcus vhile I vaited for you." "It's a possibility none of us considered, sir…and a little far-fetched...but I have to admit, it is rather compelling." Carol takes her seat as she speaks, and the others assemble around the table. "Well, you've piqued my curiosity…" McCoy remarks. "But we don't have time for fairy tales when lives are hanging in the balance." "Which is precisely why we must be willing to entertain any reasonable theory that presents itself, regardless of statistical likelihood." Spock closes his eyes and nods once. "Proceed, Mr. Chekov." Chekov takes a drink of water. "Zhank you. From the moment we arrived, ve operated under the assumption zhat the seegnals originated on the planet's surface. But the landing party found no indication of humanoid settlement, da?" He picks up the tablet and turns to a display screen behind him. Everyone is watching. "But eet was vhat Mr. Scott said that clinched eet…" Scotty smiles. "….zat even if you're small, you cantheenk big. I vondered if maybe someone used ze planet like a reflector-" "-and bounced the signal off it so it would get better dispersal?" Kirk finishes. "Exactly." He touches the screen and a stellar map appears. "So, using our ship and the coordinates on the planet as two points in a triangle…" He touches two points marked with green dots, and a dashed blue line runs between the points and a third red point. "I calculated a third location." He points at the red dot. A yellow dot is slightly to the left of the red point and closer to one of the green points. "So what's at that red point?" Uhura asks, indicating it with her finger. Chekov shares a smile with Carol. "Nothing." "Nothing?" the four small officers ask at the same time. "Da. Nothing…now. That ees the stellar map een real time." Chekov touches a tab on the screen. "And this ees the map as of five hours ago." A new map appears, except the yellow dot is overlapping the red one. "Does that mean what I think it means?" Scotty scratches his head. "Intriguing," Spock says, leaning forward. "If you're thinking that the signal originated on the asteroid….then yes, that's how it appears." Carol leans her chin on her hand. "We scanned it as a matter of course, but with everything that was going on…my mind was elsewhere." She shares a look with Kirk. "We detected large quantities of toquinite, which wasn't unusual…it's present in the meteors, too. But look at the deposits…" Carol brings up an image of the asteroid on the screen. "…they're arranged in a grid pattern, here and there across the surface." "Almost as if they were indeed arranged… by an intelligence." Spock muses. "Like cities on a satellite image…" Uhura breathes. "Wait a second….you're telling me somebody lives on that thing?" McCoy asks, eyes squinted and hands on hips. "Why, it can't be more than 10 miles in diameter!" "Not just somebody….several somebodies. After fine-tuning our scanners, ve peecked up numerous humanoid life signs on ze asteroid." "Fascinating…" This from Spock. "I'll be scuppered," Scotty says in wonder. "A wee planet full of even wee-er people. No wonder they sound so blasted squeaky." He looks up at the normal sized crew, embarrassed. "Tell me that's not what I sound like to you now." "Have you tried contacting them?" Kirk asks. "Yes, sir, but they're not responding. Whatever caused the signal to cut out is interfering with live communication, too." Uhura looks down at a tablet. "Distress call's just a general SOS. No indication of the crisis at hand." McCoy snorts. "Maybe the Grinch is stealing Christmas." Spock is standing on Chekov's tablet, studying the screen. "Curious….the orbit of the asteroid around the larger planet appears elliptical." Kirk walks over to join him. "Let me see that…." He taps the screen and the first map overlays over the second one. "According to this map, it's gotten significantly closer to the planet than it was just five hours ago." He lets out a low whistle. "That`s a pretty fast orbit. " Chekov frowns. He taps the screen several times. "Oh no…" He looks up at everyone. "I theenk I know what the distress call vas all about…." He brings up the same display on the large screen. "If ve input ze asteroid`s known trajectory….ve can extrapolate, like so." A dashed line continues onward, before colliding with the planet`s surface. "Damage to ze large planet would be seegnificant, but as for ze asteroid…I don`t think it can be any clearer, sir." Yes, for those of you who were wondering, "Toquinite" is an injoke. In Star Trek IV, Spock is questioned about "yominium sulfide" ("Nimoy" backwards + "ium") "Toquinite" comes from "Quinto". Please review if you like this!
"Small Wonder, Part 4" Kirk is sitting on the edge of a tricorder, leaning forward, as though it were his chair. He steeples his fingers in front of his face, thinking deeply. "Options?" Spock stands next to him, posed with his hands behind his back. "Sir, we should consider-" Kirk shoots a glare sideways. "I said options, Spock, not objections." "I heard you, sir. I merely wished to caution you that we are treading on thin ice, Prime Directive-wise." Spock stoically looks at him. "The mere fact that they have broadcast a request for help into space does not indicate that they are of similar development to us. For many years in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, Earth sent messages into space, though you did not possess warp drive then." McCoy walks up to Spock angrily, stabbing the air with a finger. "Are you suggesting that this is their destiny, then? To become charcoal briquettes?! Could you be any more-sorry." McCoy clears his throat, chagrined. "I, um….forgot who I was talking to." "That is quite all right, Doctor. " Spock looks downward. "But it needed to be said." "Thank you, Spock. Okay, does anyone else have an idea? A good one this time?" Kirk asks. Sulu leans forward. "Tractor beam would be my first choice." Chekov nods. "I agree. Ve vouldn't be able to drag it wery far, but we might be able to re-establish a liveable orbit." Kirk nods. "Scotty?" Scotty is seated next to Kirk, arms folded. "I think we may have enough power to pull it off...yes, that might just work." McCoy puts one foot on the tricorder Kirk is standing on. "I think we're forgetting something very important here. These people think their world is coming to an end already. Don't you think a giant beam coming from the sky is going to freak them out? Just a little?" "No kidding, Bones." Kirk stands up and walks toward an open comm on the table. "Lieutenant, have you been able to raise them yet?" Uhura is seated at her console, earpiece in place (apparently having left sometime between Chekov's revelation and Kirk's moment of deep thought). "Still nothing on all frequencies. Normally we'd send someone down to inform them, but I think a landing party of giants would scare them about as much as a beam from the blue." "You've got that right. Even Keenser'd be a monster compared to those poor sods." Scotty tsks. Kirk frowns. "How about a pocket sized captain?" Everyone is quiet. "What? I'm about as small as they are, already wearing an enviro suit…you couldn't wish for more." Carol shrugs. "He's got a point." She brings her face level with his. "Just promise me you'll be careful. No unnecessary risks, okay?" Kirk puts his hands on his hips. "I promise." "Permission to accompany you, sir…." Spock puts a hand on Kirk's arm. "Just in case." "Granted. Scotty?" "Seeing as wee me wouldna be much help in Engineering right now….and I might be able to help them repair their communication relays….count on me, sir." Scotty points to his own chest. "Great. That leaves only one." Kirk smiles. "Do I have to drag you along, Doctor?" "No, no…" McCoy shakes his head, a bit of a smile in his frown. "I knew I was coming the minute you volunteered. If there's trouble, Jim Kirk will find it, and I plan to be there to mop up afterwards." He looks upward at Chekov. "Chekov, would you mind terribly giving us a ride to the transporter room?" He indicates the tray as the four shrunken crew step onto it. "Hey, I'm a nawigator, not a taxi driwer." Chekov fakes indignation before grinning toothily. "Vun magic carpet ride coming up." Only his arm and hand are visible as Chekov holds the tray near the transporter pad. The four step down off of it onto one of the plates. "Back to the scene of the crime…." Kirk looks up at the ceiling. "You know, if I didn't know there had been an accident here, I wouldn't be able to tell. Your people do nice work, Scotty." "Thank you, sir." Scotty nods. "But the proof is in the pudding." "I don't know about the rest of you, but I'll be holding my breath until we rematerialize. I knew there was a reason I hated these things." McCoy stamps his foot. Spock studies his face, eyebrow raised. "A reason, Doctor? I was under the impression you had several." "You're right. Maybe I should write a book…." The four stand in one place. Kirk cups his hands around his mouth and shouts, "Hone in on the highest concentration of toquinite…that oughta put us in the center of things." Chekov taps a couple of buttons. "Yes Keptin. Standing by…." *** They appear in the middle of a street in a large urban area, enviro suits fully engaged. Fine dust particles and tiny pieces of rock fall from the darkened sky. Some people are running past them, covering their heads and coughing. They are dirty from the dust. The four shade their eyes, coughing out of reflex. Spock sifts some of the dust between his fingers. "From the meteor shower, no doubt." Kirk grabs the arm of one of the men. He pulls away, shouting something in a foreign language, his face filled with fear. Kirk calls after him. "Stop! We're here to-" McCoy looks at him oddly. "What are the chances they know English, Jim?" Other people run by, panicking. Spock is studying the scene while McCoy is whipping his head around, looking for someone to stop. Kirk flips open his communicator. "Kirk to Enterprise!" Scotty places his hand on Kirk's arm. "It's nae good. Dinna I tell you earlier that-" Crackles come from the speaker of the comm. "Enterprise…..xxxxt….what's your-" Scotty turns his head, upset. "Now why dinna that thing work when we were on deck 9?" "Sulu? Can you hear me?" Kirk and the others duck into an alcove near a large building. "Xxxxxt!...ahead…" "We made it in one piece, but things are pretty hectic here. Everybody's running for shelter." He draws in a deep breath. "I don't think anybody'll be able to see the tractor beam with all this fog anyway. Bring us back and engage-" McCoy pokes his head out of the alcove. FWOOOSH! Two arcs of purple light meet in the sky and spread across the surface. He turns back to them and points at the sky with his thumb. "Uhhh…guys….I think you'd better take a look at this." The dust particles are hitting the purple light and bouncing off. Kirk peers up and out. "It's okay, Bones, it's just the-" "Xxtxxt!- can't-xxt!-or beam you...xxt!-field up-sssssshhhhh…." "What? Can you repeat that?" Kirk smacks the comm with the open palm of his hand. "Come in!" "I believe Mr. Sulu was trying to tell us that a force field has been engaged around the asteroid." "Last resort?" Kirk asks. "Perhaps, though futile; at most, it would only buy them a few more minutes before destruction. Unfortunately, it also means we can achieve neither tractor beam or transporter lock." Spock casts a worried look at the others. McCoy grabs Spock by the shoulders and shakes him. "Spock, are you trying to tell us we're stuck here?!" "Yes, Doctor, unless we can deactivate the force field. Shaking me will not help; calming down and thinking rationally will." Spock calmly removes McCoy's hands one at a time. "Mr. Scott, is there any way we could locate the generator without the aid of a tricorder?" "Oh, sure, I brought along me dowsing rod for just such an occasion!" Scotty frowns. "Wait a minute…that's it!" He takes his damaged comm off his belt and opens the casing, exposing some wires. Looking this way and that, he picks up a strip of torn dirty cloth from the ground. He tucks the comm in the middle of the cloth, then grabs both ends of the cloth. "If it's low enough, this might work. Here….goes…nothing!" He whips the cloth around like a sling and releases one end, letting the comm fly up through the air. It soars upwards and hits the force field with a BWING!Zap! The exposed wires send a bolt of electricity through the field, which arcs down towards a spot on the ground, sparking before dissipating. "Well, what do you know?" Scotty grins. "Nice shot, Scotty. Let's go!" Kirk runs, leading the way down the street to a large door in the ground. "On three…one, two, three!" They pry the door open and run down a dark flight of steps to find another door, this one locked. *** Chekov leans over his console, peering at the display. "Readings are showing an energy spike in the force field." Sulu's palms are pressed against the console. "Enough to short it out?" "I don't think so. Still holding strong." Carol calls from her station. Sulu turns to Uhura. "Any luck with the comms, Lieutenant?" She shakes her head. "All we can do is hope they understood you." *** "How long have we got?" Scotty asks, furiously pressing buttons on the locking mechanism. "Blasted hieroglyphics…." "We've been asteroid-side for about ten minutes now…hard to say. As we come closer, the gravitational pull of the planet's only gonna increase." Kirk paces back and forth. Spock and McCoy stand behind them. "Got it!" The door opens with a whoosh! and they run inside towards a large cylinder mounted on a cubic stand with a computer panel on the side . "Now comes the hard part." He opens a small door and studies the mechanism inside with a critical eye. "Hmm…okay, Captain, I need you to stand on the left side. Spock, you take the right. Looks like it'll take three people to deactivate this doohickey." They take their positions. "Is it strange that I'm feeling left out here?" McCoy crosses his arms. "Left out? You're backup." Kirk looks away from McCoy and to Scotty. "All right. What do you need us to do?" Kirk leans forward. "There's a hatch in front of you – open it. You should see a coil of thick cables wrapped with a wire. At least I do." Both open their doors. "Affirmative." A blue glow comes from the open door and lights up their faces. "Second that. What now?" Kirk's hand is poised over the wires. "Lift it up to expose 3 buttons. Nice of their engineer to leave us a bit of a clue." Scotty's little door has a sequence of symbols scratched into the inside. "Okay, it looks like we'll need to press the same sequence of colored buttons in unison." "Why's it so blasted complicated, anyway?" McCoy asks. "Beats the heck outta me." Scotty replies, throwing his hands up in the air. "Perhaps a failsafe, in case someone gains unauthorized access to this room." Spock offers. "As we have." He raises his eyebrow. McCoy smiles. "What, the hidden trapdoor and pictogram security code weren't enough?" "Ready." Kirk and Spock reply at the same time. "Okay….first, the squiggly snake…then the squashed plasma cell-" Spock studies the buttons. "I do not see the resemblance…." "What?" Kirk yells over the thrumming of the generator. "Top, bottom, middle! Happy now?" They all press the buttons and there's a loud VOOM! as a cloud of smoke comes out and lights turn off. The vibrations knock everyone backwards. Scotty is sitting, dazed, in a confused McCoy's lap, while Kirk is lying on his side on the ground. Spock is facedown on his hands and knees. He turns to look at them. "I believe-" Spock pushes himself upwards – "we were successful." *** The Enterprise is flying close to the asteroid. "Force field down!" Carol shouts. Sulu rubs his hands together, smiling. He stands up from the captain's chair and goes to his usual place next to Chekov. "Excellent. Let's see if we've got some 'pull' around here. Chekov?" "Tractor beam engaged. And….lock established. Ready vhen you are." Sulu presses some buttons. "Reversing thrusters at maximum now." The Enterprise pulls on the asteroid, towing it with some difficulty. "Minimal progress, sir!" Chekov yells. "Can we do better, Mr. Keenser?" Sulu asks. Keenser, in engineering, speaks through the comm. "All she's got." He is diverting power as he speaks. "I try." Beads of sweat form on Chekov's furrowed brow. "Vill begin freefall in 15…14….13…" "C'mon, baby….budge…" Sulu whispers, staring at the screen. The Enterprise slowly but surely pulls the asteroid away from the planet. "That's it….come on…." Sulu mutters. "Escape range achieved! Ve haff saved zem!" Chekov leaps out of his chair with excitement, before plopping in his chair, relieved. He wipes his forehead. "Phew! Vhat a rush!" Sulu laughs. *** The four step out of the bunker door in the ground. Kirk flips open his communicator. "Enterprise! Come in! Do you read me?" The others are trying their comms, while Scotty is searching for his in the grass. "Got 'em, Jim." McCoy tosses Kirk his comm. "Captain?-Pssssh!-you there?" Uhura's voice. "We read you. Report." "Tractor beam was successful. We're locking onto your positions now." People are coming out of the buildings, looking around, confused, surprised. Some are pointing at the group, staring, asking each other questions. Some are holding small technical scanning devices. Kirk scratches his head. "Belay that; I think we're going to be here for a while yet, Lieutenant." *** Kirk and the other three are standing in the dusty streets, helmets off, surrounded by people. Kirk is shaking hands with one of the people, a man dressed in green robes. "You saved our entire world, Captain…all of Pellatar….I…we don't know how to thank you." Kirk dips his head. "No thanks needed, Benefactor…I'm glad we could help. All in a day's work." The Benefactor nods, then embraces each one as they leave the assembled people and head for an alleyway. "'All in a day's work', sir?" Spock asks, eyebrow raised. McCoy kicks a stone. "Hmmph! You make it sound like saving planets from annihilation was old hat for us! 'Oh sure…do it everyday.'" Kirk holds his hands out, palms up. "I was trying to be humble, Bones." "Well, that'd be refreshing." Kirk flips open his comm. "Kirk to Enterprise. Four to beam up." "Aye, and dinna forget my calculations." Scotty adds. "It'll be nice to be big again…" McCoy sighs, eyes closed. The light and sparkles swirl around them and they disappear. Kirk and the others re-materialize in the transporter room, full size, a little wobbly. They are greeted by relieved transporter officers. All four step out of a turbolift onto the bridge, to the applause of the bridge crew. Uhura embraces Spock, and Carol smiles at Kirk. Chekov is eagerly talking with Scotty, and McCoy is shaking hands with Sulu. Kirk sits alone on the edge of a chair in the observation lounge. A large window reveals a sky full of stars. Captain's Personal Log, Supplemental: We saved a world from the brink of death today, but there's one thing that never ceases to amaze me. Yet again, we were in the right place…at the right time…with the right people. And the right size, too. He chuckles. Some may call it 'serendipity'…'luck'…Spock would say it was a 'statistical anomaly'. But I kinda like Bones' word for it best….'miracle'. The Enterprise flies away in a burst of light as Pellatar floats peacefully in orbit around the large planet. The End
I pictured this as a IDW comic, which is why it's written in present tense- to describe the pictures, not tell the descriptive passages like a story.
The special camera effects /building a big version of a hallway would have been more difficult/expensive in the 60s though.
Perhaps, but Irwin Allen based an entire series on the premise - "Land of the Giants," ABC-TV, 1968-70. It was fairly good sci-fi and the effects were quite good for the time. I watched it as a kid but it didn't hold a candle to TOS. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_of_the_Giants